Aerospace Components Manufacturers to Convene in Hartford

Aerospace Components Manufacturers (ACM) “Future WorkForce Opportunities” Fair and Trade Show draws over 850 students to learn about the many career paths available in the local aerospace manufacturing industry. The event takes place the afternoon of Nov. 9 at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford. ACM comprises one of the largest, most experienced concentrations of world-class aerospace companies, the world's AEROSPACE ALLEY! ® The organization points out that member firms grew up where aerospace was born. Today, precision components manufacturer in the state take to the skies every day, in every corner of the globe, as they have since the inception of powered flight.

ACM member companies are “united by a single goal; be the world leader in providing customers with aerospace components of unsurpassed quality, at competitive prices and always, on-time delivery.”

To achieve that goal, officials work with peers and with regional, national and international experts to ensure continuous improvement of our products and services. The cornerstone of the effort is an aggressive program for adopting and implementing lean enterprise practices and conducting ongoing workforce training and development.

Student attendees of the event will have an opportunity to meet and talk with representatives of 100 top suppliers, all in one place at one time.  Last year, over 800 students and teachers visited from 32 schools spread across Connecticut and southwestern Massachusetts to learn about the array of career choices available in the aerospace manufacturing industry.

CT's Science and Technology Ranking Rises to 6th in the Nation

Following three consecutive finishes ranking ninth in the nation in the State Technology and Science Index (STSI), Connecticut has moved up to number six in 2016, it’s highest finish in more than a decade.  The state ranked ninth in 2010, 2012 and 2014 in the analysis produced every other year by the Milken Institute, following a 7^th place ranking in 2008 and 10^th in 2004.  The ranking was the highest for the state in all seven releases of the STSI index. The STSI benchmarks states on their science and technology capabilities and broader commercialization ecosystems that contribute to company growth, high-value-added job creation, and overall economic growth, the institute’s website explains.  

“We view the STSI as a measure of a state's innovation pipeline. The index isn't intended to be a measure of immediate economic impact, but rather to demonstrate that the return on science and technology assets will accrue in future years.”

The top five states in 2016 are Massachusetts, Colorado, Maryland, California and Washington.  Rounding out the top 10, after Connecticut, are Minnesota, Utah, Virginia and Delaware.

In specific categories, the state’s ranking varied, with considerable improvement in some categories. In the Technology and Science Workforce composite index, Connecticut ranked 10th, an improvement from rankings of 16th in 2014, 13th in 2012 and 14th in 2010.  This composite measures the relative presence of high-end technical talent, and consists of 18 eighteen various indicators.

The STSI's 107 individual indicators are sorted into five composites: Research and Development Inputs, Risk Capital and Entrepreneurial Infrastructure, Human Capital Investment, Technology and Science Workforce, and Technology Concentration and Dynamism.  The report indicated that "Connecticut showed major improvement in the Technology Concentration and Dynamism index, going from 21st to 10th. This dramatic rise marks one of the larger overall changes on this index. While modest increases were seen in the Research and Development Inputs index and Human Capital Investment index, these two indices have a much heavier focus on stock measures, and Connecticut’s aerospace and defense sectors help anchor the state’s performance in these areas."

Connecticut also ranked 10th in the Technology Concentration and Dynamism composite index, the state’s highest ranking in that category, and largest jump from two years ago.  In 2014, Connecticut ranked 21st.  In the two previous analyses, Connecticut was 12th in 2012 and 18th in 2010.

In the Human Capital Investment composite index, Connecticut ranked third, as it did in 2014 and 2012, after ranking fifth in 2010.  In Research & Development, Connecticut placed eighth, its second highest finish, after ranking tenth, seventh and seventh in previous indexes.  Connecticut ranked 11^th in Risk Capital and Entrepreneurial Infrastructure, up from 14^th two years ago, but not as high as sixth place in 2012 and third in 2010.

The Human Capital Investment composite index looks at how much is invested in developing the workforce—the most important intangible asset of a regional or state economy. Twenty-one indicators are included in this composite index.  The R&D composite examines a state's R&D capacity to see if it has the facilities that attract funding and create innovations that could be commercialized and contribute to economic growth, and includes eighteen indicators.  The Risk Capital and Entrepreneurial Infrastructure Composite Index determines the success rate of converting research into commercially viable products and services. It includes 12 indicators.

While Connecticut was gaining ground, other states were bottom dwellers.  The analysis raised alarms regarding the prospects for those states.

“The states with the weakest innovation assets and ecosystems for starting and growing innovative firms face a bleak future unless changes are made. West Virginia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky, and Louisiana make up the bottom five in this year's STSI. They are the least knowledge-intensive and their residents exhibit weak entrepreneurial skills. All of them have undertaken efforts to change their position in technology and science but have had limited success.”

Massachusetts remained in first place with a score of 83.7, retaining the position it has held since the inaugural STSI was released in 2002.

Wyoming, the most improved state, climbed 10 places, to 36th. The state had broad gains but benefited most from the broader definition of occupations in the Technology and Science Workforce category, which included its talent in mining engineering, the analysis pointed out. Missouri rose six spots, to 28th; seen as primarily attributable to a 24-place leap in Risk Capital and Entrepreneurial Infrastructure.

New London’s Hearing Youth Voices is Finalist for Region’s First-Time $50,000 Prize

Hearing Youth Voices, a youth-led social justice organization working to create systemic change in the education system in New London, is one of seven youth organizations in New England with a chance to win a $50,000 grant from The Nellie Mae Education Foundation, the largest philanthropic organization in the region focused exclusively on education. The first-ever Nellie Mae Education Foundation Youth Organizing Award honors a New England youth organizing group that has shown tremendous commitment to advancing student-centered learning or redesigning education to meet the needs of all students - specifically focused on public secondary education.

At Hearing Youth Voices (HYV), youth leaders identify issues, research solutions, and run campaigns aimed at making concrete, meaningful changes in their public schools. The core membership and leadership are working class youth of color, many of whom are also LGBTQI, and/or immigrant, and/or have been pushed out of school.

The winner from among the finalists will be decided by online votes of the public, during a month of balloting.  From November 1 at 12:00 PM EST – November 30 at 12:00 PM EST, the public is invited to vote for finalists through email on the Students at the Center Hub and via text message. The organization with the most votes will receive a $50,000 grant to continue the organization's work around advancing student-centered learning or redesigning education to meet the needs of all students.

Hearing Youth Voices describes itself as “a youth-led organization that trains young people of color to organize, fight, and deconstruct systems of oppression in our community.” Recently, HYV youth ran the “We Want to Graduate Campaign,” which focused on systemic obstacles to students graduating, specifically absence-based credit loss and suspensions.

After two years of hard work on the part of hundreds of youth, the New London Public Schools (NLPS) revised its attendance policy to offer supportive interventions instead of punishments for absent students, a change that affected the more than 3,000 students and families in NLPS. Additionally, HYV youth worked alongside a broader coalition of parent advocates, school staff, and Board of Education members to create the district's first-ever Restorative Practices pilot project.

Most recently, HYV successfully advocated for students to become voting members of the Board of Education's Policy Committee, integrating student voice into the highest level of policy decision-making in the district. Youth leaders identify issues, research solutions, and run campaigns aimed at making concrete, meaningful changes in their public schools.

“Our seven Youth Organizing Award finalists are leaders in promoting student ownership and voice as part of school decision-making in New England,” said Nick Donohue, president and CEO of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation. “These students have committed themselves to improving educational experiences for their peers while building the knowledge and skills which will serve them long after graduation. I’m proud to offer a well-deserved congratulations on the great work they’ve achieved as well as the impact they are making for future students.”

In a student-centered environment, learning is personalized, competency-based, happens anytime, anywhere and allows students to take ownership of their education. Student-centered learning prepares students to master the academic knowledge, critical thinking, problem solving and communication skills they need to thrive.

Also vying for the prize are Portland Empowered (Maine), Sociedad Latina (Boston), Granite State Organizing Project (New Hampshire), Young Voices (Providence), Providence Student Union (Providence), and UP for Learning (Vermont).

The HYV website explains that “our work is different- it is about collective action to solve systemic problems. We don't want to make life easier for one young person or one family. We want to go right down to the root of the problem and fix the system so that no more youth and families have that problem! And we believe that the people who have lived the problem are experts on it and need to help define what the solution could be.......and lead the charge to make that change happen.”

The Nellie Mae Education Foundation supports the promotion and integration of student-centered approaches to learning at the high school level across New England—where learning is personalized; learning is competency-based; learning takes place anytime, anywhere; and students exert ownership over their own learning. To elevate student-centered approaches, the Foundation utilizes a four-part strategy that focuses on: building educator ownership, understanding and capacity; advancing quality and rigor of SCL practices; developing effective systems designs; and building public understanding and demand.

https://youtu.be/WtTuHED6TM4

Children Who Primarily Attended Early Childcare Centers Before Kindergarten Start School Stronger in Math, Reading

Young children who attended day care, preschool and other types of center-based care in the year before kindergarten earned higher scores in math and reading and had stronger learning and cognitive flexibility skills than their peers who did not participate in such activities, according to a national report by Institute of Education Sciences (IES). The study revealed racial and ethnic disparities in early care arrangements. The percentages of first-time kindergartners who received center-based care as their primary early care and education arrangement the year before kindergarten were lower for Hispanics (48%) and Pacific Islanders (28%) than for whites (58%), blacks (56%), Asians (62%), American Indians/Alaska Natives (57%) and kindergartners of two or more races (61%).

About 36 percent of kindergartners from households where a primary language other than English was spoken had no regular early care and education arrangement in the year before kindergarten, compared with 18 percent of kindergartners whose primary home language was English. The data of the study, released this year, is from the fall of 2010.

The 60-page report, produced by the American Institutes for Research (AIR) for the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), drew from a nationally representative sample of U.S. kindergartners as they entered school.

Connecticut's Office of Early Childhood, established in 2014, notes that "Study after study confirms the value of high-quality early childhood education for developing the cognitive, social and emotional skills that children need to succeed in kindergarten."

Major findings from the study, which examined children’s performance as they entered kindergarten in fall 2010, include the following:

Reading: children who had no regular early care and education arrangements the year before kindergarten and those whose primary arrangements were home-based relative care or non-relative care tended to score lower than children who were primarily in center-based care or who spent the same amount of time in multiple care arrangements.

Math: children who had no regular early care and education arrangements the year before kindergarten tended to score lower than children who attended any type of arrangement outside of parental care. Children who were primarily in home-based relative care scored lower than children who were primarily in home-based non-relative care, center-based care or multiple care arrangements for equal amounts of time.

Cognitive flexibility scores were lower, on average, for children who had no regular early care and education arrangements the year before kindergarten and for those whose primary arrangements were home-based relative care than for children who primarily attended center-based care. (These scores measure a child’s ability to adjust behavior or attention in response to changes in the environment.)

Approaches to learning—in which teachers rated students on attentiveness, task persistence, eagerness to learn, learning independence, flexibility, organization and ability to follow classroom rules—tended to be lower for children who had no regular early care and education arrangements the year before kindergarten than for those who were primarily in home-based non-relative care, center-based care or multiple care arrangements for the same amount of time.

The report examined five categories of primary early care and education arrangements for children:

1. center-based care, including day care centers, Head Start programs, preschool, prekindergarten and other early childhood programs;
2. home-based relative care;
3. home-based non-relative care;
4. multiple arrangements for equal amounts of time;
5. no regular early care arrangement (i.e., mainly parental care only)

It found that the percentage of children who attended center-based care as their primary arrangement before kindergarten has increased only slightly over nearly two decades, from 55 percent in 1995 to 58 percent in 2012.

The American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance both domestically and internationally in the areas of health, education and workforce productivity.

https://youtu.be/bs_Svx6JPro

Digital Citizenship Summit, Born in CT, Grows on Twitter

A year ago, the first annual Digital Citizenship Summit was held in West Hartford, hosted by the University of Saint Joseph.  This Friday, the second annual Summit will be held in San Francisco, hosted by Twitter at their global headquarters.  The livestream is expected to reach 3.2 million people globally via Twitter Livestream. The mission of the initiative hasn’t changed as the reach has grown - to unite people, organizations, and companies around the world committed to the safe, savvy, and ethical use of social media and technology. The Digital Citizenship Summit, being held on October 28, is described as a global event, with speakers from Australia, Spain, England, Ireland, Canada, and Kenya.  Attendance can be in-person or virtual.

The event includes a diverse range of well-known and emerging voices with “quick and powerful” 10-minute talks, along with a range of panels covering the breadth of digital citizenship.  The three themes for the Summit are: Citizenship, Literacy, and Advocacy.

Organizers say “the Digital Citizenship Summit isn’t a conference, it is a movement - away from fear and distrust, and towards educating, empowering and engaging all groups.”  The Summit will share best practices and insights, and promote collaboration, bringing together educators, parents, students, organizations and industry.

The initiative was launched by West Hartford’s David Ryan Polgar and academician Marialice B.F.X. Curran.  Dr. Curran's teaching, scholarship and service focus on digital citizenship and social media in K-12 teacher education. She was named one of the Top 10 Digital Citizenship bloggers to follow in 2014 by Common Sense Media. Polgar, an attorney and college professor, is a frequent speaker (three-time TEDx) and tech commentator on television and in print, focusing on digital citizenship, creativity, cyber ethics, tech balance and humanizing the online experience.

“Millions of people are struggling with modeling safe, savvy and ethical behavior online.  Beneath the surface, there are major conflicts between parents, students, educators and administrators that span personal safety to politics.  The Digital Citizenship Summit bridges the gap between what we want to see online and how to actually be the digital change,” organizers point out.

The event will be emceed by Kelly Wallace, a digital correspondent and editor-at-large for CNN. It is also serving as the kick-off for US Media Literacy Week. The Digital Citizenship Summit will be livestreaming from Twitter headquarters from 9 AM PST to 5:00 PM PST. It can be seen on the Summit website or from Twitter's @Safety account. Individuals do not need to register in order to watch the live stream, but all registrants will receive post-event videos and resources, according to organizers.

Joining internationally renowned speakers, there will be student voices – “passionate voices from elementary school students to college-age advocates who are already leading us into the future as positive role models.”  Among the speakers is Jim Steyer, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Common Sense Media, the nation’s leading non-partisan organization dedicated to improving media and technology choices for kids and families. He is also the Co-Founder and Chairman of the Center for the Next Generation.

In addition to the annual flagship summit event, past digital summits have been held in Ireland and the United Kingdom, with plans for a summit in Australia later this year.

Javier Colon Music Video Collaboration for NASA Takes Off, Includes CT Science Center, UHart

An Atlas V rocket blasted off with NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter from Cape Canaveral in Florida on June 18, 2009. Two years later, on June 29, 2011, West Hartford’s Javier Colon won the inaugural season of the NBC-TV hit “The Voice.” It’s doubtful that anyone would have predicted that the trajectories of those two orbits would coincide.

However, they have – with the release this month of a new music video co-performed by Colon, along with Matt Cusson.  The new song, “The Moon and More,” was inspired by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission, and produced in collaboration with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland and veteran video producer/editor David Ladd.

Colon, who earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the Hartt School at the University of Hartford, said: “This project brought me back to when I was a kid watching NASA launch the shuttle missions.  Every kid at some point wants to fly, and I think that dream has a lot to do with NASA’s exploration of space and discoveries.”

The song and music video focuses on the inspirational nature of studying the moon -- the cornerstone to learning more about the solar system -- and how LRO has ushered in a new era of lunar science. The mission is expected to relay more information about the lunar environment than any other previous mission to the moon.

The video appears on the NASA LRO website, and is available on You Tube, where comments have been overwhelmingly positive, and numerous space exploration websites.  Filming locations included the Hartt School of the University of Hartford and Connecticut Science Center;  the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York; the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.; and the “Living on Mars” mural in the Bronx, New York.

“I wanted to create a unique production for the LRO mission that centered around music as a way to engage kids, parents and educators,” said Ladd. “A major focus was also to convey an important and encouraging message to kids, particularly children of color—that nothing is beyond their reach. You can achieve the goals you set and take yourself to places you never thought possible — just as NASA has done in going back to the moon with LRO and its continued journey into the solar system.”

Ladd conceived of the project, and selected Cusson and Colon to write the song and perform the music.  The project came together with a strong sense of destiny.  Ladd had heard Cusson’s music previously, through a mutual friend, and had been of fan of Colon’s since the voice.  When he contacted Cusson to gauge his interest, he learned that Cusson and Colon were friends, musically and otherwise.  The connection was made, and Cusson and Colon set out to create a song that matched – or, as it turned out, exceeded, the story board that Ladd had in mind.

“I picked out five of each of their songs that I liked, and that I thought had a sound that would work.  Then I let them have at it.” Ladd recalled.  When he received the first rough videos from them of the words and music, his response was succinct:  “This is perfect.  Keep running with it.”

They did, and the song was completed earlier this year and debuted in recent weeks.  Ladd hopes the song will boost awareness of the LRO, and transcend it.  “Some have described it as the ‘Frozen’ of space exploration in its majestic feel.  We hope it will have broad appeal, a song that you’ll enjoy on the radio, and be inspired by.”

Ladd explained that the casting in the music video, which features people of color (including members of the same family to highlight authenticity) was intentional, so that “kids that don’t always see themselves,” can better connect to the possibilities that science and exploration can offer. (PHOTO:  Javier Colon, David Ladd, Matt Cusson)

The LRO mission team believes “The Moon and More” will have a lasting impact, adding a popular element to an array of education programs that are already part of the LRO mission. The LRO Lunar Workshops for Educators are an award-winning professional development program focused on lunar science and exploration for grade 6-9 science teachers, and programs for grade levels beginning with elementary school have been made available to teachers nationwide.

“It was exciting to have this chance to work with NASA,” said Cusson, a Pittsfield, MA native. “As a musician, you don’t usually think that this is something you could do. But I was honored to offer up my skills and music, and to bring the worlds of science and music together.”

“A number of us working on LRO have had something inspire us to pursue careers in science and engineering,” said LRO Deputy Project Scientist Noah Petro at Goddard. “This video serves as an opportunity to inspire future generations to follow their dreams into the sciences or the arts.”  Ladd expressed appreciation for the supportive efforts of both the Hartt School and the Connecticut Science Center, and indicated that some of the videos best segments were filmed at the Connecticut locations.

LRO is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, as a project under NASA’s Discovery Program. The Discovery Program is managed by NASA’s Marshall Spaceflight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

https://youtu.be/PPB1ZHb9FKA

Teen Safe Driver Week Observed in Connecticut; Car Crashes Are #1 Killer of Teens

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  In 2014, 2,270 teens in the United States ages 16–19 were killed and 221,313 were treated in emergency departments for injuries suffered in motor vehicle crashes. That means that six teens ages 16–19 died every day from motor vehicle injuries.

Those stark statistics provide the backdrop for the observance of National Teen Safe Driver week, which runs through Saturday,in Connecticut and nationwide. The week-long observance, through October 22,  brings that message to communities across the state by reminding them safety must come first.  Connecticut adopted in 2008 more stringent teen driving laws to raise awareness and reduce crashes, injuries and deaths. The state has seen an 82-percent reduction in fatalities for 16 and 17 year-old drivers from a high of 11 in 2002 and to an average of two per year since the tougher laws began.

"As long as motor vehicle crashes remain one of the leading causes of death for American teenagers, everyone needs to do their part to ensure our youngest, and most inexperienced drivers have the knowledge to make responsible decisions when they get behind a wheel," said Governor Dannel P. Malloy. State Attorney General George Jepsen said, "National Teen Driver Safety Week is a great time to encourage conversations with new and soon-to-be drivers about the importance of safe driving habits. Parents, teachers, advocates and even peers all play a role in helping to make sure that teens make safe choices when operating motor vehicles."

Members of the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Teen Advisory Board said the week is important for a variety of reasons, and encourages teens to play an active role in promoting safety behind the wheel.  The risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16-19-year-olds than among any other age group, CDC data indicates. In fact, per mile driven, teen drivers ages 16 to 19 are nearly three times more likely than drivers aged 20 and older to be in a fatal crash.

“One second represents when we make a driving decision, be it a good or bad one,” said Armani Nieves, a senior at Hall High School in West Hartford and member of the DMV Teen Advisory Board.  “It only takes one second to be a good or bad driver.”

Maggie Silbo, a junior at Mercy High School and a member of the teen advisory board, said teen drivers can lead by example in many ways.  “To be safe drivers, teens should follow the rules of the road, such as not talking or texting on the phone, obeying the posted speed limits and following the passenger restriction laws,” Silbo said.  Angela Zhu, a senior at Cheshire High School, said teenagers can play an active role as responsible passengers.“It's all about awareness,” said Zhu, also a member of the DMV Teen Advisory Board.  “All it takes is one small sentence.  If you really care about your friends, simply tell them to put down the phone.”

Compared with other age groups, teens have among the lowest rates of seat belt use. In 2015, only 61% of high school students reported they always wear seat belts when riding with someone else. Teens are also more likely than older drivers to underestimate dangerous situations or not be able to recognize hazardous situations, and more likely than adults to make critical decision errors that lead to serious crashes, according to the CDC.

The DMV Teen Advisory Board also came up with the theme for this year’s DMV-Travelers Teen Safe Driving Video contest:  “One Split Second…”  The board designed the theme to engage teens to produce a video on how a split-second decision related to driving can make a difference in the lives of these youngest drivers.

“I believe it is crucial to promote the message of safe driving for teens, especially as there are even more distractions on the road today,” said Kojo Appiah, a senior at Xavier High School in Middletown and a member of the  DMV Teen Advisory Board.  “This video contest is an exciting activity that teens can do with your peers while learning the life lessons and responsibilities of being a safe driver.”

DMV Commissioner Michael Bzdyra said this week is a great time for parents to review the state’s teen driving laws (http://ct.gov/teendriving/laws) and create a safe driving agreement (http://1.usa.gov/1MA7miP) with their teens. “This is an important week because it’s a reminder to teens, parents and communities who can all be positive influences for safe driving in a variety of ways,” Commissioner Bzdyra said.   “This is a great time to discuss safe driving at home, in the classroom or anywhere else to promote good choices related to driving and help ensure teens follow the rules of the road.”

Nationwide, Parents Seek Expanded Health Curriculum in Schools

In Connecticut, a planned, sequential PK-12 Coordinated School Health (CSH) education curriculum is a system designed to addresses the physical, mental, emotional and social dimensions of health.  CSH aims to improve students’ health and their capacity to learn through the support of families, communities and schools working together. A new nationwide survey indicates that the broader, comprehensive definition of health education is precisely what families are seeking in the health education of children.  Teaching kids about drugs, alcohol and sex appears to be less controversial than ever before with the majority of parents in a new poll saying schools should and do teach these subjects.

Many parents want more — saying those topics are not enough — finds the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health. Researchers surveyed a nationally representative sample of parents with kids in middle or high school. Two-thirds of parents polled say schools should definitely cover emotional and mental health issues — which may include such subjects as dealing with depression, stress and bullying — yet only a third say these topics are currently covered by their child’s school.  Another 68 percent of parents want to see schools cover basic first aid, and 63 percent say kids should learn CPR.

A coordinated approach to school health aligns health and education efforts and leads to improved physical, mental and developmental outcomes for students, according to the State Department of Education (SDE) website. The department’s overview of the program indicates that “Students’ physical, social and emotional development requires the same level of ongoing assessment and support as their academic development.”

“Research has consistently concluded that student health and academic achievement are directly connected and, in fact, that student health is one of the most significant influences on learning and achievement,” SDE points out.

In the national survey, parents “clearly perceive a gap between what their children need and what they are receiving in the area of mental health education, as well as basic first aid and CPR,” says Sarah Clark, M.P.H., co-director of the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health.  “We are seeing increasing concerns for such issues as stress, depression and suicide among young people, and parents want schools to be a part of the solution. These results suggest that the stigma of mental health issues may have relaxed among today’s parents, in favor of using a broad array of resources to help children and adolescents with these critical areas.”

The Connecticut curriculum is designed to “motivate children and youth to maintain and improve their health, prevent disease, reduce health-related risk behaviors and develop and demonstrate health-related knowledge, attitudes, skills and practices.”

Nearly four in 10 parents (39 percent) in the Mott survey believe schools should educate students on how to use the health care system. But only one in 10 parents say the topic is covered in their child’s school. Low-income parents are more likely to say schools should teach students how to use the health care system—perhaps, Clark notes, because these parents face challenges themselves in accessing health care.  The survey does not include a state-by-state breakdown of the data.

Obesity Rate Climbs in Connecticut, Is Among the Nation's Lowest

Connecticut now has the 10th lowest adult obesity rate in the nation, according to The State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America. Connecticut's adult obesity rate is currently 25.3 percent, up from 16.0 percent in 2000 and from 10.4 percent in 1990.

According to the most recent data, adult obesity rates now exceed 35 percent in four states, 30 percent in 25 states and are above 20 percent in all states. Louisiana has the highest adult obesity rate at 36.2 percent and Colorado has the lowest at 20.2 percent.

U.S. adult obesity rates decreased in four states (Minnesota, Montana, New York and Ohio), increased in two (Kansas and Kentucky) and remained stable in the rest, between 2014 and 2015. This marks the first time in the past decade that any states have experienced decreases — aside from a decline in Washington, D.C. in 2010.

The data, released in September 2016 by the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, reflects information compiled nationwide in 2015.

Connecticut’s childhood obesity rates are 15.8 percent for 2-to-4 year olds from low-income families, 15 percent of 10-17 year olds, and 12.3 percent of high school students.

Regarding obesity-related health issues, Connecticut ranked 31^st among the states in the current adult diabetes rate, which is 9.3 percent, and 30^th in hypertension at 30.4 percent of the population. 

In 1985, no state had an adult obesity rate higher than 15 percent; in 1991, no state was over 20 percent; in 2000, no state was over 25 percent; and, in 2006, only Mississippi and West Virginia were above 31 percent.  Nationwide, obesity rates are higher among women (40.4 percent) compared to men (35.0 percent).

Efforts to Improve Math Education in CT Don't Yet Add Up, Report Finds

If Connecticut students are to excel in math, it will take a concerted effort at the state and district level, revised curriculum by state colleges preparing math teachers, and greater community involvement.  That overall effort, according to a new state report, still has a ways to go. The 30-member Commissioner’s Council on Mathematics report, issued last week, outlines recommendations for educators, policy leaders, and community members to improve K-12 mathematics education in the state.  The report stresses several recommendations that are grounded in the lessons learned regarding strong leadership, quality professional development, dedicated time, and effective collaboration within, among, and beyond school districts.

The council outlines several specific actions for the State Department of Education, individual school districts, higher education, and the community in the report that are distilled into four broad recommendations. Each recommendation is evidence-based, actionable, inclusive of all stakeholders, and measurable.

The four broad recommendations are:

• develop a clear and consistent understanding of the Connecticut Core Standards-Mathematics (CCS-M) at the classroom, school, district, and state levels;
• provide the support and training necessary to effectively implement the mathematics standards with fidelity in all classrooms, schools, and districts;
• implement appropriate interventions and acceleration to support the needs of a diverse group of learners; and
• engage all stakeholders in the process of putting the Connecticut Core Standards-Mathematics into practice through effective communication that keeps teachers, parents and community members informed and participating in the process.

“Every student deserves the opportunity to receive a math education that is rich and rigorous, and equips them with the skills needed to graduate from high school prepared to be successful in both college and career,” said Commissioner Wentzell. “These recommendations by the Council on Mathematics have created a clear path that will help the State Department of Education take the steps needed to ensure that every student in our state receives a high-quality mathematics education.”

Next steps identified in the report include that “all stakeholders need to work and learn more in the area of mathematics education,” specifically as it relates to the following:

• instructional support necessary for students with special needs to access the standards;
• instructional support necessary for English learners to access the standards;
• interconnectedness of curriculum, instruction, and assessment; and
• teacher evaluation and certification requirements.

The framework for the recommendations was a logic model described as four buckets: Deep Knowledge of the CCS-M, Curriculum Development and Implementation, Intervention and Acceleration, Community and Family Engagement.

The Commissioner’s Council on Mathematics was initiated by Commissioner Wentzell in 2015 in response to the Smarter Balanced test results in mathematics. The council was convened to spearhead the state’s efforts to improve supports in mathematics by identifying best practices and exploring promising innovations in mathematics instruction.

Communities are urged, in some of the recommendations, to establish partnerships with local districts to create internships for high school students with businesses that require mathematics skills, use social media and distribution lists to promote the importance of the CCS-M, and urge community members to attend and participate in state- and district-provided workshops that deliver information about the standards.

Among a series of recommendations aimed at higher education, colleges are urged to:

• Increase mathematics coursework for elementary pre-service teachers.
• Increase coursework that focuses on the mathematical practices at all levels.
• Collaborate with district partners to ensure that pre-service teachers’ field experience is with a teacher who exhibits conceptual understanding, deep content knowledge, and effective use of the practices.
• Mentor teachers and provide training specific to mathematics content and pedagogy to teachers who will be assigned a pre-service teacher.
• Create professional learning workshops for in-service teachers to interact with professors at the university to make the connections of what is being taught at the K-12 level and how it is used in higher education.
• Build relationships with high schools by promoting early college experiences in high schools
• Require coursework in family engagement strategies for pre-service teachers.

Council members included parents, teachers, curriculum specialists, principals, superintendents, board of education members, higher education professors, business leaders, and State Department of Education staff members with the purpose of closely examining the current state of mathematics education in Connecticut.

The Commissioner selected the members through recommendations made by various stakeholder groups across the state, including the Connecticut Parent Teacher Association (CT-PTA), the American Federation of Teachers-Connecticut (AFT-CT), the Connecticut Education Association (CEA), the Connecticut Association of Schools (CAS), the Connecticut Business & Industry Association (CBIA), and the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE).  They met monthly from February 2016 to June 2016, and the recommendations were developed with the input of local school districts, higher education, and experts in family and community relations, according to the report.